'Thinks People Are Put On Earth To Serve Him': Ex-Workers Describe Vivek Ramaswamy Running For US Prez — Report

Vivek Ramaswamy, who is running for the US President, has been described as 'neurotic', 'mercurial', and 'paranoid leader' by some of his former coworkers, says report.

Indian-American Vivek Ramaswamy has been making headlines since the day he announced his run for the US president. He has declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination for the presidential elections slated for next year. Despite remaining far below former US President Donald Trump on the list of GOP candidates, Ramaswamy's statements, debates and views have maintained his aura. The entrepreneur has pitched himself as a truth-teller, an ace debater and can 'handle the heat'. However, some of his former employees have labelled him as a neurotic, mercurial, and paranoid leader, reported Business Insider.

"He thinks people are put on this earth to serve him," the report quoted a person close to Ramaswamy as saying.

 

Ramaswamy Cannot Stand The "Heat", Say Ex-Coworkers

The workers told Insider that some aspects of his management style are quirky. "He'd order Taco Bell for the office on his birthday", according to former employees, quoted Insider, adding that he's also been known to demand white-glove service from staffers.

They said that he would insist that they follow an often bizarre laundry list of rules and procedures to suit his every need, Insider stated in its report.

A peculiar thing about Ramaswamy is a relentless fixation on temperature. According to Business Insider, workers told it that the GOP candidate could not stand the heat and had dictated that the office thermostats at Roivant and Strive had to be set to 64 degrees or below. 

The former employees said that this made the workspaces so frigid, that coworkers resorted to using space heaters at their desks. They also wore their Roivant-branded Patagonia fleeces to battle the chill.

The report added that Ramaswamy was very much concerned about his safety and hence hired a former Army Ranger as a personal security guard, long before he began running for president. 

A former worker said that the ex-Ranger would regularly sweep the Strive offices for security threats.

The report stated that at one point, Ramaswamy's presidential campaign employed three former Army Rangers, according to financial disclosures. The rangers would rush to the hotel room ahead of him when he traveled to cool down the room and ensure it was a "sufficient temperature" before he entered.

However, his campaign spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the security was necessary because Ramaswamy and his family had received death threats, quoted Business Insider. Some of his former colleagues describe him as intense, smart, energetic, and a consummate salesman. 

Notably, Ramaswamy was 28 when he founded the pharmaceutical company Roivant despite having limited experience in the field of drug development, the report added. Workers there called the environment more akin to a fast-moving tech startup than a pharmaceutical company. 

According to Insider, former Roivant employees said Ramaswamy worked hard and expected the same of others. Recalling an incident, two of them said that when a colleague asked about cutting out early on "summer Fridays" at a town hall meeting, Ramaswamy rejected the idea.

"He lost his cool completely and went off on a rant about summer Fridays and how dare anyone ask about that," one of the former employees said, as quoted by Insider.

Ramaswamy's Campaign Rejects Claims

Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign has disputed his "entitled and unusually demanding" characterisation, reported Insider. 

"Vivek applies the same standards to himself as to those around him," McLaughlin said, adding that he works around 18 hours a day "on average" and calling him "unusually respectful" in light of his relatively rapid rise to immense wealth.

As per the report, she added, "Vivek doesn't believe that people are put on this earth to serve him, but that they are supposed to serve whatever mission they've signed up for."

Labelling employees' descriptions "inaccurate", McLaughlin said that Ramaswamy "has never once raised his voice or used bad language with employees."

"Yes, Vivek likes it chilly," the campaign spokesperson said as quoted in the Insider's report.

On the input of a former employee that whenever Ramaswamy travelled, he'd insist on booking backup flights, and backups to the backups, and a handful of backup hotel rooms,

A former employee called him "obsessive about ensuring his travel went smoothly". Reacting to this claim, McLaughlin said that Ramaswamy makes duplicative travel arrangements out of "utmost respect" for the "time and effort" of primary voters who come to his events.

One person said that when he ordered takeout for lunch, he had his assistant plate it and serve it with a napkin before he ate. Another said he asked that cottage cheese be waiting on his desk every morning.

McLaughlin said, "Curious you find this newsworthy". She said that during the campaign trail, "we eat takeout every day," and that Ramaswamy serves himself and others. 

She said it is "false" to say he forced subordinates to serve him food.